Someone New
by Tron45
Summary: A new one-shot. This one, however, features the twelfth Doctor and Lauren Bannister. This story takes place after Song of the Ovulum, in an alternate universe where the Bannisters were sucked through time by the unstable portal energies at the Dragon Camp. Lauren travels with the Doctor in an attempt to find her parents and her brother. More info inside.


**Disclaimer: I do not own the Doctor, the song 'This Is Gallifrey', or Lauren Bannister and her family. They are owned by BBC and Bryan Davis respectively. I do, however, own this concept for the twelfth Doctor.**

**AN: I intend to create a series of one-shots in a bit of an alternate universe where the Doctor played a more active role in Bonnie and Billy's lives. Once I get those up, I will post this in the chronological order it was supposed to happen in, but I just finished this and felt like posting it. To anyone who reads this, Hope'sFace especially, please tell me what you liked/disliked, what you would have liked to see or not see. I really could use the input. Also, if you want to listen to what the Doctor is playing in this fic, then listen to the song 'This Is Gallifrey' by the BBC Orchestra. Yes, I know it was used in the actual show, but hey, I think that the music fits the emotions that I'm trying to convey here perfectly. Wow, really long blurb. Anyway, read away.**

Lauren wandered through the halls of the TARDIS looking for the Doctor. It was hard to find him when he didn't want to be found, but it wasn't impossible; and on this occasion, the TARDIS knew that her thief was in need of companionship, so she began to gently steer Lauren to the Music Room.

When Lauren found it, she opened the door slowly to find the Doctor standing in the middle of a bare room. It was pitch black other than the single spotlight that shown down on the form of the Time Lord. His back was to the human, and he apparently hadn't heard her enter, since he continued to stare into the blackness in front of him.

The Doctor lifted his arms quickly and began to move them smoothly back and forth in the air. As he did, music began to play. Once the music began, the Doctor closed his eyes and began to dive deeper into the song, which conveyed the emotions of a being who had been alive for more than 1,000 years and had watched people leave him, whether it be by choice or by death.

It was music that he had composed when he had stood by and watched his planet burn, but for some reason he could never bring himself to play. Now, more than 500 years later, he was using the TARDIS to show his sorrow at the death of his people on this, the anniversary of the Last Great Time War.

Lauren listened to the music silently as she watched the Doctor continue to play the music, each note eliciting a different emotion. Joy and sorrow, peace and terror, all in one song. Lauren couldn't believe it possible for one song to do so much to a person.

The Doctor's eyes were open, and they were filled with tears. His people, his family, his entire race had burned that day, and it had been his fault. The music had been a way to channel his sorrow, and now, as he played it, he was letting them go. He had to. Lauren and the other Bannisters needed him, and he couldn't be crying over the loss of the Time Lords while he tried to find the Bannisters throughout time.

By the time the music ended, the Doctor's face was soaked in his tears, and Lauren had begun to cry as well.

Turning, the Doctor saw her standing in the doorway. "How long have you been standing there?" he asked.

"Since the beginning," she replied. "What was that song?"

"I call it 'This Is Gallifrey'."

"It was beautiful, Doctor. It really was."

"Yes... Gallifrey was a beautiful planet; only I didn't see that until it was too late."

"Doctor, if you don't mind me asking, why are you so sad?"

The Doctor looked into Lauren's eyes and answered. "Because I burned them, Lauren. I killed the Time Lords. There came a day when I had to destroy them to save the universe. They were my people, Lauren, and I stood by and let them die.

"You look at me now, and you see a teenage boy with blonde hair, blue eyes, and a hoodie. You would think that I wouldn't feel the way I do about certain things, but I do. I feel that way, because underneath the smiles, underneath the running, underneath the way I walk, talk, dress and act, I'm not a carefree teenager. I'm really just a tired old man who has seen too much.

"It's days like today that I really begin to think that the Time Lord does live too long."

The Doctor walked past her and out the door, leaving Lauren to ponder his words. Coming into the console room, he leaned heavily on the control panel. "You brought her to me, didn't you, Old Girl?" he asked his ship. The TARDIS didn't respond. It couldn't after all, but the Doctor knew the answer to his question. "Thanks for that. I really did need someone else to talk to about that day, not just you. You hurt as much as I did when they passed, and it's not something that either of us like to remember."

The TARDIS hummed with more vibrancy, as if agreeing with her thief that some memories, although painful, need to be talked about with someone new.


End file.
